The Twelfth International Congress for Electron Microscopy will convene in Seattle in August of 1990 as the first world EM Congress to be held in the US since 1962. This milestone event will establish the directions and objectives for the theory and practice of microscopy and determine research priorities for the remainder of the century. It is being organized by the Electron Microscopy Society of American in cooperation with the Microbeam Analysis Society under the authorization of the International Federation of Societies for Electron Microscopy. Although the emphasis will be on electron microscopy, other advanced forms of imaging, such as confocal and scanning tunneling microscopy, will also receive full coverage. The scientific program is arranged around some 55 symposia with about 500 lectures by recognized international experts on imaging of crystalline and amorphous materials, surface and bulk microanalysis and applications to structural and microelectronic materials. More than 3000 scientific participants are expected to attend and contribute at least 1700 platform and poster papers. A grant of $24,720 is requested from the National Cancer Institute to support the attendance and participation of minority investigators and students in the Congress. This amount will be supplemented by corporate contributions. It is extremely important to the future well-being of this country that much greater participation of the nation's minorities in science and technology is developed as rapidly as possible. Because of the multidisciplinary nature of microscopy, there is an abundance of career opportunities and this situation is quite evident to anyone who visits the "positions" available display at the EMSA/MAS annual meetings. This purpose alone justifies facilitating the attendance of those presently outside the mainstream scientific community. The beneficial impact of the knowledge, stimulation and motivation that will be derived by those fortunate enough to attend will be no less important. A special session with an appropriate speaker will be arranged to supplement their other contacts at the Congress.